


The Shape of Things to Come

by hunenka



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Gen, Hell, Post-Episode: s15e01 Back and to the Future
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-17
Updated: 2019-10-17
Packaged: 2020-12-21 01:48:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 963
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21066764
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hunenka/pseuds/hunenka
Summary: Belphegor is staring at Dean again, and Dean’s starting to think maybe there’s more to it than just the demon trying to piss Dean off.Set after 15x01Back and to the Future.





	The Shape of Things to Come

It takes Dean a while to catch on. In his defense, he’s got a lot going on—figuring out a way to keep the unleashed nasties contained in the circle, coming to terms with the fact that they’ve been nothing but puppets in Chuck’s hands all their lives, trying to make sense of his annoyingly complicated feelings about the whole Jack, Mom and Cas mess, and last but not least, worrying about Sam.

So yeah, he doesn’t put two and two together right away. After all, Belphegor’s a demon, and demons are weird at best, so at first Dean just figures all the staring and dreamy smiles are just Belphegor’s way of having a little fun at Dean’s expense. Get on his nerves with the fanboy schtick.

The thing is, it’s working.

They’re at a motel near the quarantined town, waiting for Rowena to come and give Belphegor's spell a boost, when Dean can’t stand it anymore. Sam and Cas are off, on a quick trip to the bunker to get some of the ingredients Rowena asked for, so Dean’s stuck on demon-sitting duty again.

He’s trying to watch TV, some documentary on Australian wildlife, baby koalas hugging trees and munching on leaves, but he can’t concentrate because he can feel Belph’s eyes on him non-stop.

“Hey, cut it out already,” he finally snaps, turning to glare at the demon.

Belph shrugs where he stands leaning against the wall in an easy sprawl, hands in his pockets. It’s so wrong, seeing Jack’s familiar body held in such an unfamiliar way. Dean can't really blame Cas for trying to avoid the sight. “Cut what out?”

Suddenly it feels a little ridiculous, but Dean carries on. “Starin’ at me like I’m a fucking museum exhibit.”

Another shrug. Belph is smiling. “Can’t help it. Told you, I’m a—”

“Fan, yeah.” Dean should’ve kept his mouth shut. He can’t talk about the Pit. He pushes to his feet, advances on the demon to tower over him. “Last warning,” he lets his voice drop to a dangerous, intimate tone. “Quit. Staring.”

He half-expects a flippant “Or what?”, but Belph actually nods. “Alright. Sorry.” He sounds oddly earnest.

Dean steps back. Huh. “Good.” He goes back to his documentary, but the koalas are gone now, and the presenter is talking about huge, hairy spiders instead. With a frustrated groan, Dean grabs the remote and starts flipping through the channels, searching for something else. Eventually he finds a rerun of _Magnum, P.I. _—the original, not the shitty reboot—and leaves that on, settling back on his bed.

In his peripheral, he can see Belph move, sitting on the other bed. Watching the show, seems like. “I didn’t mean to be weird,” he says when the commercials come on. “With the staring, I mean.”

Dean snorts. “Yeah, sure.”

Belph sits up straight, leaning over the narrow aisle between the beds towards Dean. “I was just trying to get to know you better.”

Now it’s even weirder, bordering on creepy. Why are the commercials so goddamn long? Dean pretends his full attention is on a chick with a spray tan and unnaturally white teeth gushing about bubbly ice tea.

“We missed you, you know,” Belphegor says, quiet. “Down there. Hell missed you. You are a legend.”

Dean’s mouth is dry. He refuses to tear his gaze away from the TV screen. Refuses to respond.

“The Righteous Man,” the demon says with what sounds almost like reverence. “Alastair’s star pupil. The one who started it all. The one who defeated the Leviathan, killed Azazel, the Mother of All, Abaddon, Cain, Lucifer, and if the legends are true, even Death himself. The one who had Crowley wrapped around his finger.”

The commercials are over, Magnum and Higgins are arguing over something, but they might as well be on mute. Dean's palms are sweaty and he's breathing hard, chest tight with something he can’t quite name. He can’t make his mouth move, can’t make Belphegor shut up.

Belphegor keeps on talking. “I was kinda lying to you earlier, when I said Hell was just business as usual before God screwed everything up. Truth is, it was a mess. It’s been a mess for years, ever since Crowley got killed, or even before that. No direction, just chaos. Everything falling apart.”

That’s not exactly breaking news to Dean. He’s seen enough to know Hell’s been in decline for a long time, a train wreck in slow motion. He even sort of tried to help Crowley fix it and get it back on track, but it didn’t work. Crowley’s heart hadn’t been in it by then.

“We’ve been talking, down in the Pit, about the situation. Hell needs a firm hand,” Belphegor presses on, so close now that his breath is on Dean’s face. “Hell needs someone strong and capable, someone with a reputation for getting things done. Someone you don’t wanna mess with.”

Dean can’t move. He can barely breathe. _Don’t say it, don’t say it_, he begs.

Belphegor says it. “Hell needs _you_.”

His heart is in his throat, beating wild. Dean closes his eyes, counts to ten, then counts to ten again. He can feel Belphegor watching him intently.

“That’s why I sought you out. You’ll come back, and as the new King of Hell, you’re gonna make things right again,” the demon is saying now, excited. “With good old me as your right hand man, maybe.”

This is insane. “I’m…” Dean clears his throat, tries again. “In case you didn’t notice, I’m human, and alive.” For now, at least.

“Psht!” Belphegor waves a hand dismissively. “Maybe now. But come on, Dean. You’ll end up back down there sooner or later. You know it. It’s where you belong.”

And Dean can’t deny that.

**Author's Note:**

> This will very likely be Kripke'd once 15x02 airs, so I'm just posting it now even though it's pretty unpolished.
> 
> Kudos and comments welcome!


End file.
